The present invention relates to teaching techniques in the medical field and more particularly to a method and apparatus that are used to teach palpation and auscultation techniques for locating, identifying and assessing the condition of a fetus in a pregnant female.
It is important in the medical and veterinarian professions to assess and diagnose the condition of pregnant females and their unborn offspring. Palpation techniques, known as "Leopold's maneuvers", have been developed for identifying which part of the fetus lies in the fundus of the uterus, determining the location of the back of the fetus in relation to the right and left abdominal quadrants of the mother and determining which part of the fetus lies in the inlet. Palpation thus enables the doctor, nurse or veterinarian to determine whether the birth will be normal or abnormal. If an abnormal condition is located by palpation, corrective measures can be taken to insure a healthy mother and child. Thus, proper palpation techniques are vital to diagnosis of pregnant females.
Auscultation techniques are also vital in diagnosis. Auscultation is performed with a fetoscope, which is a sensitive stethoscope adapted for the purpose of detecting sounds produced by the fetus. Auscultation techniques involve counting and timing the fetal heart beats to determine the fetal heart rate. Also, it is important to listen for any fetal heart irregularities. Thus, as with palpation, auscultation techniques are vital to diagnosis of pregnant females.
Since palpation and auscultation techniques are so important, it is desirable that doctors, nurses and veterinarians have sufficient training and a practice in these techniques before encountering real-life situations.
It is desirable in the medical education professions to have an apparatus that simulates various real-life fetal conditions in a pregnant female. Pregnant women and/or pregnant animals are not readily available for use in the class room. Indeed, most pregnant women are not willing to be used as "guinea pigs" for teaching student nurses and doctors palpation and auscultation techniques. Also with live models, obviously, it is not possible to vary the fetal positions or the fetal heart tones. Thus, it is not possible to expose the students to the many real-life conditions that they may experience in later, actual practice.